Treasurer says Oklahoma revenue tops record high

Oklahoma brought in $12.18 billion over the past year, a record in collections to state coffers, Treasurer Ken Miller said.

The new record was $73 million more than the previous 12-month record of $12.1 billion set in February 2015.

“It would appear Oklahoma’s economic engine is hitting on all cylinders,” Miller said Tuesday. “In addition to the revenue picture, leading and lagging economic indicators paint a positive picture for the state’s economy.”

Over the past 12 months, the state collected $1.2 billion more than it did the previous year, which shows an increase in tax collections and, Miller said, an improving economy.

During 2017, lawmakers approved revenue-raising measures that changed sales tax exemptions and tax incentives on the production of oil and gas, which is also known as gross production. The new revenue accounts for more than 3 percent, or $33.8 million extra during the month of June alone.

Since August of last year, those revenue changes have brought in $308.5 million more for state programs and services than Oklahoma would have

without them.

Tax increases on cigarettes, fuel and gross production that were signed into law in late March took effect July 1, and will have no impact on collections until next month's report.

June was the 15th consecutive month of positive growth in Miller's monthly gross receipts to the treasury report, which compares receipts for each month with receipts from the same month for the prior year. The overall 12-month report shows growth in all major revenue streams. The report for June collections shows growth in individual and corporate income taxes, along with sales tax and gross production taxes on crude oil and natural gas, Miller said.

Oklahoma collected $1.1 billion in gross revenues in June, which was $86.7 million or 8.6 percent more than it collected in June 2017. Gross production tax revenue brought in $68.1 million during June. Corporate and personal income taxes combined to bring in $389.7 million. Sales tax collections of $423.1 million also helped boost June numbers.

Miller's monthly report outlines overall state collections before they are diverted, or apportioned, to several funds. Some money is sent to dedicated funds for road and bridge repair or education, while much of it winds up in the general revenue fund that lawmakers use to appropriate each year based on their priorities. The gross receipts to treasury report also highlights economic conditions.

Despite an improving economy, Miller noted that growth might slow in the near future. The Oklahoma Business Conditions Index slipped from 68.5 to 61.1 in June, with numbers above 50 showing anticipated economic growth over the next three to six months.

Oklahoma’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate remained unchanged in May at 4 percent, while the U.S. jobless rate dropped by one-tenth of a percentage point from April to 3.8 percent. It was the fourth time since October 1990 and the second consecutive month that Oklahoma’s jobless rate has been higher than the U.S. rate.